This weekend the Crimson Tide travels to Arkansas to compete in the Tyson Invitational. This will be the last indoor meet of the season before the conference championships start later this month.
Sophomore Lakan Taylor said the team is not overlooking this meet. On the contrary, she expects to face a lot of tough competition that will require her full attention.
“This is a huge meet,” Taylor said. “We are going to get a taste of it at Arkansas.”
Coach Dan Waters said he thought the team picked up some much-needed momentum last week.
“I’ve been looking for us to improve our competitive mindset with each meet, and I think we did that,” he said. “Most of our people improved last weekend.”
Waters said any success the team has experienced so far was the result of talent, effort and focus. He said the team will need to maintain that attitude to be successful this weekend.
Senior Nia Barnes said she does not plan on slowing down anytime soon. Despite several strong showings, Barnes said she is not happy with her current progress and still has plenty of room for improvement ahead of her.
“We want to bring the Alabama Crimson Tide track team to be up there in the nation,” she said.
The team has the opportunity to make a big statement this weekend. Most of the other SEC schools will be at the Tyson Invitational. This weekend will also pit Alabama against non-conference opponents who are expected to compete at the Indoor National Championships a month from now.
Waters said a successful showing this weekend is critical. The momentum picked up at the Tyson Invitational will help the team going forward.
“We are basically at the threshold of the championship portion of our indoor season, which is what we work for year-round, so it’s time for us to be at our best,” he said. “We need to use this meet as the final building block before we focus in on winning at SECs.”
